flying_q

AA170 LAX-LAS

Looks like this could take a while...

Ground crew starting pushing us back, but the catering truck from 47B hadn't moved yet. Just barely clipped the wing. FAA and Airport police are en route. They won't let us taxi back to the gate before an inspection is performed.

http://i.imgur.com/PUEQGNR.jpg

wrp96

If I were you I'd call to see if you can get protected on a later LAX-LAS flight as most likely your flight just got cancelled. Or perhaps wait until you are allowed to taxi back to the gate.

FlyerTalker688786

Time to gamble in Las Vegas...Hit big baby.

burlax

If on a leisure trip, why not let the flight get cancelled, hope that the later flight are all sold out, and ask for compensation?

FWAAA

If the catering truck was parked (as the OP indicated), then the wing was not "clipped by catering truck," rather, an AA crew negligently pushed a plane into a parked catering truck, damaging the wing.

RogerD408

I'd say there's a wing-walker getting a lecture on paying attention! If the truck was not moving (as proven by the legs down) then the pilot gets the ticket.

cynicAAl

just a lecture ? I'm guessing the wing walker is now seeking other employment.

flying_q

It was hard to tell. The truck was parked and the wing walker started to give the go ahead. All of a sudden he started throwing Xs into the air with his guide sticks. Originally I thought the plane drove into the truck, but the truck was a good few feet off the plane it was catering (further than the plank extends from the truck). It is possible the truck started backing up as the plane started pushback.

The walker immediately ran to the truck to yell something...tough to tell who was at fault.

Anyways, it was cancelled. They found a 767 and combined ours with the next flight, although many are rolled over to even later.

Would have taken compensation, but have a 4p meeting that I will be late for. Business, not pleasure.

Edit: I now see legs down in the picture. Truck must have been parked. Looks like the walker is in some serious trouble.

brp

Some people on leisure trips want to get where they're going, which is why they booked the trip. We fly 100% for leisure, and we wouldn't take compensation (unless an exorbitant amount), just because it's leisure. I value my leisure time more than my work time.

Cheers.

FWAAA

I may be wrong, but I don't think that pilots are responsible when the ground crew pushes their plane into another object. If the pilot were taxiing the plane forward, then perhaps the pilot would be facing a lecture.

I wouldn't want to be the wing walker or the guy driving the tractor pushing your plane back. Looks like a failure to communicate adequately.

tcholt

Had similar situation, but catering truck driver's fault, back in November 2011 at DFW. The catering truck driver wedged his truck under the wing and got stuck under the wing. Of course last flight out to SA at almost 11pm, so had to deplane, wait for ground crew shift change and then moved to a new plane and over 2 hours later around 1am finally flew out of DFW. Wish I had been sitting where I could have taken a pic and if only a bar would have been open in the airport.